Portrait artist of the year

Ladies and gentlemen at Brockington House posed as the models for aspiring young artists taking part in a unique portrait artist of the year competition.

Brockington was once again the venue for the competition involving students from the Hereford College of Arts.

It follows the success of the first competition held last year and which was the first event of its kind held by a care home in the UK.

Our ladies and gentlemen spent the day acting as models and the artists used a variety of different mediums including charcoal, paints, ink and digital to create the portraits.

They were then considered by a judging panel which included local artist Mark Stewart of Sunrise Giants, Brockington House Home Director Shann Thomas, Brockington House Activity Lead Tara Chatterly-Russell, and Dormy Care Communities Chief Executive Helen Davies-Parsons.

After much deliberation and careful consideration, the title of Portrait Artist of the Year, and a Hobbycraft voucher worth £150, was awarded to 16-year-old Gwen Gillick for her pencil drawings of four residents, Chloe, Christa, Peggy and Pat.

The runners-up – Georgie Wixey and Iris James-Smith – were also presented with vouchers.

Gwen said: “I couldn’t believe it when my name was read out because the standard of work among everyone taking part was so high.

“I am delighted that my drawings were so well received. It was lovely sitting with the residents and finding out about them and their individual characters, which I was then able to use in my work.”

Resident Peggy said about her drawing: “Gwen did an amazing job, I was so pleased with my portrait.”

Mark Stewart, of Sunrise Giants, said: “There work produced this year was exceptional and it was pleasing to see such high levels of confidence in the students and their unique individual styles. It made the judging incredibly difficult.”

Helen Davies-Parsons, Chief Executive of Dormy Care Communities, said: “It was lovely listening to the conversations between the students and our ladies and gentlemen and then to view such impressive work from such a talented group of individuals.”

Kay Rambaud, Curriculum Leader at Hereford College of Arts, said: “We were delighted to be able to come back to take part in the competition again this year. The students really showcased their range of creative skills and it’s done wonders for their self-confidence.”

We recently held a gallery viewing of all the portraits for our residents and their families.